Violence Against Black Lives Matter Protestors: a Review

Abstract

Purpose of Review: The Black Lives Matter (BLM) protests against racialized police violence represents the most prolific mass social movement in modern times. It has been met by sustained and repressive violence by state authorities and right-wing groups. This review seeks to synthesize existing scholarly, journalistic, case report, and crowd sourced data on violence directed against BLM protestors. Recent Findings: Data from various sources suggests that police disproportionately target BLM protests for violent intervention. There is also mounting evidence of organized and vigilante right-wing violence targeting BLM protestors. While police frequently use chemical irritants and projectiles, right-wing protestors often use car ramming to bluntly injure protestors. The true scale and nature of injuries affecting BLM protestors remains unknown though injuries resulting in the need for intensive care, operative intervention, permanent morbidity, and mortality have been reported. Summary: State and conservative civilian violence against BLM protestors represents an ongoing threat to the right to organize and publicly dissent. The use of force manifested by police and right-wing groups against BLM protestors resulted in significant injury and mortality.